Without You
by BulletBlaze
Summary: "I", Stiles began dramatically, leaning in closer to Scott, "Stiles Stilinski, am going to ask Thee Derek Hale to Prom." He threw his arms out to the sides and displayed some pretty impressive jazz hands, awaiting Scott's cheering. Cheering that never came.


**You should all totally listen to this song as you read the end of this fic. It's also what this story is named after**

 **watch?v=P2n3aipuRus**

 **Enjoy!**

 ***Warning for very brief homophobic language***

"So, I've decided I'm actually going to do it."

Scott stared at his best friend in horror. "Dude," he began, sounding utterly terrified. "No way. We've _talked_ about this! You can't just shave off a guy like Jackson's eyebrows a week before Prom! He'd _destroy you!_ "

"Wha-? No! That's not what I'm talking about, Scotty, calm down."

Not that Stiles hadn't maybe have had plans of doing that as well… He was still thinking it through, trying to decide if the momentary satisfaction of causing Jackson such humiliation would be worth the castration he would no doubt later receive from either Jackson himself or one of his croonies. Or _Lydia._

But, regardless, that's not what Stiles was referring to.

Which, going by the slumping in his shoulders, relieved Scott greatly. "Thank god. So what are you going to do, then? Is it gonna get me in trouble?" he asked with a hint of suspicion and a touch of resignation, which, _rude._

"Do you really think so little of me, Scotty? I'm hurt, truly. To answer your question, _no_ , I'm not going to get your cute little goody-goody ass in trouble. Or anyone's for that matter, not even my own. Well, unless I, you know, get beat up or something. But whatever, it'll be fine."

Scott stared once again, this time with confusion. "So… you're gonna do something risky… that won't get you in trouble?"

"Yes, Scott, keep up!" Stiles chided, cuffing the back of Scott's head lightly.

"What are you planning on doing, then?" he asked.

"I", Stiles began dramatically, leaning in closer to Scott, "Stiles Stilinski, am going to ask Thee Derek Hale to Prom." He threw his arms out to the sides and displayed some pretty impressive jazz hands, awaiting Scott's cheering.

Cheering that never came.

Instead, all he got was _another mother fudging_ stare. So Stiles just kept wiggling his fingers and his eyebrows until Scott finally opened his mouth.

"You're so gonna get beat up."

Stiles dropped his arms back to his sides, agitated. "Thanks for the vote of confidence, Scott, it really means a lot. C'mon, man, I could use a little encouragement here."

Scott quickly shook his head. "No, I didn't mean by Derek! I've seen you two together, I feel like he could say yes! It's just… His friends, you know? All the guys on the basketball team. They're like a big pack or something and, well, they sorta hate you…"

Sighing, Stiles clapped a hand down on his friend's shoulder and said, "Yeah, I know. But it's our Senior year! This is our last Prom, and I've never gone with a real date before. And I really like him, Scott, you know that. Plus, you said it yourself! You think I have a chance! What more could I ask for?"

"Alright," Scott gave up after a moment with some reluctance. "What are you planning?"

"Alright, he's in there. I'm in the uniform, I've got the pizza, and class starts in six minutes. Two minutes before the bell rings I'll walk in, say I've got a large meat-lovers for Hale, give him the pizza, and hope he says yes." Stiles looked at the message on the inside of the pizza box. It wasn't all that original, no, but it would be fun, and Stiles knew how much Derek loved meat-lovers pizza.

' _This is honestly cheesy as hell, but will you go to Prom with me?'_

And if he ended up getting rejected, well. He'd have some comfort food to soothe his broken heart at least.

Scott nodded at him, grinning nervously, and then checked the time on his phone. "Okay, you got this bro. I've gotta go; can't be late to Harris for a third time or he'll call my mom. Tell me how it went as soon as you get out of class!"

"Alright, alright, I will! Now go, I can do this!" Stiles shooed Scott away and got ready to burst into the quickly filling room. He got a few odd looks, or a lot, but opted to ignore them and focus on getting his head in the game.

 _That's right,_ he thought, _channel your inner High School Musical. You've got this._

This was it. Game time. Just as Stiles went to enter the room shouting for Derek, a blur of maroon and gray swept past him and snatched the pizza box right out of his hands.

"Thanks for the pizza, Stilinski! I didn't get breakfast this morning, actually. I'm sure the rest of the guys in Study Hall will appreciate this, too!" shouted Garrett as he jogged down the hallway with Stiles' hopes and dreams clutched tightly in his grubby little paws.

Stiles knew there was no way he was getting that pizza back, so instead he yelled, "You owe me 13 bucks, asshole!"

"Mr. Stilinski!" Stiles flinched and turned to Mr. Yukimura, who had seemingly materialized in front of him to tell him off. "That kind of language is not tolerated, you know that. Now, I suggest you get to class before you're tardy. And perhaps change, if you can."

Stiles dropped his head and rubbed the back of his neck dejectedly. "I'll get on that right away, sir."

He didn't even get to eat his pizza.

Stiles stood in the gym after school the next day, ready for Derek to exit the locker room for basketball practice. In front of him, he had about 40 plastic red cups on the floor spelling out the word 'PROM', and in his hands he had a sign that read, 'Derek, don't make me go solo.'

The door opened and a horde of boys came out of the locker room, but not Derek. Stiles resolved to stay until he came out and deal with any teasing from the players in the meantime.

As it turned out, teasing wasn't what he had to worry about.

"Thank god, I completely forgot to bring a water bottle today," Matt said as he bent down and picked up one of the cups, turning to walk to the water fountain.

"Dude," Stiles started after him, "c'mon, don't be a dick, just bring it back-"

But he was already drowned out by the rest of the team shoving past him to grab a cup of their own, exclaiming their gratitude. When the space around him cleared, Stiles saw that there wasn't a single cup left, even though there were only about 15 guys in the gym who had 'forgotten' their water bottles. Sighing quietly, Stiles folded up his sign and went to leave, but then the door opened again.

"Stiles!" shouted Derek. "What are you doing in here?" he asked as he approached Stiles, stopping only a foot or two away from him. Stiles looked down and shuffled his feet a bit.

"Oh, uh, nothing. Just had to, uh… say hi! Uhm. Hi?"

Stiles inwardly cringed as Derek's warm smile turned a bit confused, but luckily he didn't call Stiles out on his blatant lie. Instead, he asked, "What's that?" and nodded to the folded up poster.

"Nothing! It's just a project that got messed up, no biggie. I should probably get going, actually. Gotta take care of some stuff at home. You know, homework, making dinner, redoing this project."

Derek's smile changed again, this time a little… disappointed? He reached out and patted Stiles' shoulder, then let his hand rest there. "Is everything okay? We haven't hung out in a while and you've barely talked to me in the last week. Did… Did I do something?"

He looked so concerned, so worried that he had done something to damage their friendship, and Stiles felt himself melt. He quickly went to reassure Derek, practically shouting, "No! No no no, you didn't do anything, I promise, I'm just a little off right now, don't worry!"

Derek slumped almost imperceptibly in relief and squeezed Stiles shoulder. "If you wanna talk about… whatever's going on, I'm here, okay?"

He said it with such genuine emotion, Stiles couldn't stop himself from pitching forward and wrapping his arms around Derek's broad shoulders, pulling him into a tight embrace. It wasn't a weird or new thing for them, hugging, and Derek immediately reciprocated. Stiles could hear the other guys in the gym murmuring, but he ignored them and focused on Derek's strong arms holding him close. It was refreshing, and Stiles desperately hoped he didn't mess this up when he asked him out. Cause Derek's hugs were the best.

They pulled back at the same time, lingering only slightly, and Stiles smiled at Derek, who smiled back.

"See ya later, Der."

Stiles felt Derek's eyes on him until he was out of sight.

Later that night, as Stiles was trying to think of another way to ask Derek to Prom, a knock came at his window and a grin washed over his face.

He walked over to the window and pushed it up, making room for Derek to climb through. "You haven't done that in a few months. What's the special occasion?"

Derek dusted off his jeans and grinned up at Stiles. "Do I have to have a reason to visit my dear friend? Maybe I just wanted to get my groove on."

It was a thing they had been doing for almost three years. Derek would come over and they would listen to music for hours, sometimes singing along, sometimes keeping it low and talking over it, sometimes just basking in each other's presence and listening. It was honestly one of Stiles' favorite activities, and he would never turn it down.

"I don't know, I'm pretty busy if you can't tell."

Derek huffed out a laugh and shoved past Stiles, going straight for his stereo and CD collection. He skimmed over the titles he had already committed to memory for a few moments, and then picked one out of the pile. He put it in the stereo and turned up the volume. After a moment, the loud beat and guitar of 'Icky Thump' by The White Stripes came through and Stiles grinned. This was one of his favorites, and Derek knew that.

They went through four albums that night, including 'All Killer, No Filler' by Sum 41, the Four Year Strong self-titled album, and 'The Young and The Hopeless' by Good Charlotte before Stiles' dad knocked on the door and asked them if they could turn down their teenage rebelliousness for the night, because he had to go to work early in the morning.

Derek left shortly after that, stating that he'd be back in a few nights with his Mötley CD. Nikki Sixx was Derek's favorite musician and he never failed to listen to at least three Mötley Crüe or Sixx A.M. songs a day.

As Derek said goodbye and climbed back through the window, an idea started to click in Stiles' mind.

Stiles went over the plan in his head as he walked to the cafeteria. Erica, Isaac, Boyd, and Scott all had a portable speaker paired to Stiles' phone and were sitting strategically surrounding Derek's table. They were all turned up all the way and would be ready for when Stiles turned on the music.

He nodded to himself, smiling nervously as he got closer to the cafeteria, and then he was right outside the doors. All he had to do was walk in, walk up to Derek, and just _do it._

He went to open the doors, but was shoved aside and slammed against the wall. He hissed in pain as his shoulder throbbed, no doubt going to form a bruise in the morning. He looked over at his assailant and wasn't surprised to see Jackass Whittemore sneering at him. Behind him stood Garrett and Matt, smirking like the dickwads they were.

"Okay, what the hell is your problem?!" Stiles spat at them.

Jackson's glare turned murderous and he scoffed at Stiles, sauntering closer, trying to look intimidating. Which, _okay,_ it sort of worked. But Stiles wasn't going to back down. Not this time. He met Jackson face-to-face, not even a foot separating them.

"You know what our problem is, Stilinski. We heard you telling Wheezy about how you're going to ask our captain to Prom."

"So fucking what? Who cares if I ask Derek to Prom?"

"Because Derek isn't a little fag, like you! You may be friends or something, but that doesn't mean you can go around spreading your fucking fairy dust all over him!" Jackson spit the words out without remorse of hesitation. _Literally_ , he spit them. Stiles could feel the saliva cooling on his face. _Gross_.

Derek seriously needed to think about getting some new friends.

"Say it, don't spray it, Jackass. And maybe you should reconsider starting something with a teacher standing right behind you.

All three boys whipped around, but by the time they realized there was no one there, Stiles was already pushing open the doors and running through them. He could hear their footsteps pounding after him and their insults being hurled his way as he sprinted toward Derek's table. They were gaining on him, but it was too late. Derek's table shook under his feet as he jumped up onto it, dodging trays and pressing play on the music.

Derek stared up at him in surprise and then at his three 'friends' seething from the side of the table, but not wanting to do anything in front of any teachers. Then the song started and Derek's gaze was pulled in every way around him as 'Without You' by Mötley Crüe blared through the speakers. They eventually found their way back to Stiles as Nikki's vocals kicked in. Along with Stiles'.

" _Without you, there's no change,_

 _And nights and days are gray,_

 _If I reached out and touched the rain,_

 _It just wouldn't feel the same."_

Derek's face went through a transformation as Stiles serenaded him from atop the table, and there wasn't a person in the room who wasn't watching. His ears and cheeks slowly flushed red and a smile tugged at the corner of his mouth, which soon broke free into a blinding, albeit embarrassed grin.

" _Without you in my life,_

 _I'd slowly wilt and die._

 _But with you by my side,_

 _You're the reason I'm alive."_

Stiles belted out the words, uncaring of his cracking voice or the phones pointing in his direction, or the mutters of Jackson and his croonies. All he had eyes for were the bright look Derek was directing at him, full of awe and hope and _joy_ , and Stiles. _Stiles put that look there._

" _You're the reason the sun shines down_

 _And the nights, they don't grow cold._

 _Only you that I'll hold when I'm young,_

 _Only you as we grow old."_

Stiles' hands left where he had been holding an imaginary microphone and instead used them to play the air guitar through the guitar solo. Derek lowered his head, hiding his bashful grin, before quickly looking back up as Stiles finished out the song.

" _Without you in my life,_

 _I'd slowly wilt and die._

 _But with you by my side,_

 _You're the reason I'm alive._

 _But with you in my life,_

 _You're the reason I'm alive."_

Stiles dropped the rockstar act and lowered his hand down to Derek, who took it without hesitation. Stiles looked directly in his eyes, trying to push all of his feelings for Derek into that one look, as he crooned out,

" _But without you, without you…"_

The song ended and the cafeteria was completely silent. Everyone watched as Stiles and Derek stared at each other for a moment, until Stiles spoke.

"Derek, without you, Prom wouldn't even be worth going to. But with you by my side, it would be a everything I could ever ask for. So. Der, will you please go to Prom with me?"

Instead of answering, Derek used Stiles' hand to pull himself up onto the table. He reached out and grabbed Stiles' face in his hands, dragging him into a slow kiss. Stiles could hear people cheering and catcalling, but the rushing in his ears quickly drowned it out. The gentle drag and slide of Derek's lips over his own was knee-weakening, and so much better than Stiles could have ever imagined. His hands crept up to Derek's waist, wrapping around his torso and pulling them together tightly. He feared that if he didn't have something to tether himself to, his legs would give out.

Stiles' hand lifted up to cup Derek's cheek, stroking his cheekbone as they slowly pulled apart. Derek let his forehead rest against Stiles', and he rubbed their noses together lovingly as he whispered, "I was hoping you would ask me."

A happy bubble of laughter escaped Stiles' mouth and he chastely pressed his lips to Derek's again. "You could've just asked me, you know."

Derek looked bashful again as he admitted, "I sort of thought you were going to ask someone else, and that was why you were acting so strange. I could only hope that that someone was me, but I wasn't sure."

"Dude, I've pretty much been in love with you for two years. You're the only person I could imagine taking."

The look in Derek's eyes grew soft and hopeful. "You mean it? You're… in love with me?" he whispered, loud enough for only the boy in front of him.

Stiles nodded. "Yeah. It's totally okay if you're not, we can work up to it. Or if you never are, that would suck, but I could work with it because I'll take literally whatever you're willing to give and if that means suffering unrequited love for the rest of my life, then hey, I'm down-"

Derek's lips, more forceful this time, and definitely something Stiles couldn't wait to get used to, cut him off.

"Don't worry, Stiles. It's not unrequited."

"Wha- for real?"

"Yes, Stiles, for real," Derek chuckled.

"Like, you mean, you…?" Stiles trailed off with his eyebrows raised. He ached to hear Derek actually say it.

"I'm in love with you, Stiles."

Stiles' cheeks ached with the force of his smile, but seeing Derek's reciprocated grin only made him smile harder. And nothing- not the teachers telling them to get off the table or all the obnoxious cooing or the indignant mutterings of Matt and Garrett and Jackass- could wipe it off his face.

 **Thanks so much for reading! I know I should be working on Sad Prayers For Guilty Bodies, but I couldn't get this idea out of my head. Please leave your thoughts! They mean so much to me :)**


End file.
